Apple has announced Apple Pay is now accepted at over 2 million retail spots in the U.S., with merchants like Chick-fil-A, Au Bon Pain and Crate & Barrel also beginning the rollout in their stores. According to Bloomberg, a report from TrendForce claims that mobile payments will increase to $620 billion globally in 2016 from $450 billion last year.
In addition to pushing past its goal to make Apple Pay available in 1.5 million retail locations by the end of 2015, the company said the feature’s in-app purchase volume more than doubled in the last six months of the year compared with the first half.
Earlier this week, online retailer Zappos also added Apple Pay as a payment option on its iPhone and iPad apps, in the light of intensifying competition among mobile payment providers. “We’ve been getting requests from customers to use Apple Pay for quite a while,” said Aki Iida, head of mobile for Zappos. “It makes the customer experience easier, why not try it?”
“The challenge for us and Apple as well is to see how much the feature is adopted — not just by retailers but also consumers,” Iida said. “Consumers have to change their mindset, that this is a feature they want to use.”
Iida said he may also consider working with Apple’s rivals, such as Google’s Android Pay.
Canadians are eagerly awaiting Apple Pay support from major Canadian banks, as many are still holding off from signing up for an American Express card, as only the latter supports the mobile wallet so far. The only sign of hope we have seen so far is the recent leak by TD Canada Trust, which so far has failed to materialize.
